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Yesterday, a serious case review by Northamptonshire Safeguarding Children Board found that bungling doctors had missed clear signs of abuse.

It revealed Isabelle was admitted to hospital six times in her first five weeks of life and on the third occasion medics did not spot two broken ribs.

The review also found Uzzell had been sectioned before and had a child with a 15-year-old - but this information was not shared before Isabelle's birth.

Uzzell and Prigmore first dialled 111 on March 6, 2014, reporting Isabelle had leg pains and the tot was discharged two days later.

She was re-admitted on March 9 after her parents said she went "blackish-purple" in the face and stopped breathing for a few seconds.

But after observations she was once again discharged and three days later was back in hospital after Uzzell called 999 and said she was "going limp".

The call handler reported hearing piercing screaming but Isabelle was just given fluid and antibiotics for a suspected infection.

When she was x-rayed at Kettering General Hospital, despite having two broken ribs the scan only showed "patchiness" of the left lung.

There was no specialist paediatric radiologist present, and the fractures were not noticed on the X-ray by other members of the medical team.

Prigmore was sentenced to two years and four months in prison (Image: SWNS.com)

Isabelle was discharged and the report said had the fractures been spotted she would have been removed from her parents' care.

It said: "If the rib fractures had been identified in the X-ray, this would have triggered a safeguarding response and, most likely, Child N [Isabelle] would not have remained in the care of her parents, and not suffered subsequent catastrophic injuries.

"Child N's X-Ray films during her admission were reviewed and reported by members of the radiology department who were general radiologists, rather than radiologists with specialist paediatric expertise or a paediatric interest.

"Previously, there had been a radiologist with paediatric special interest at the hospital but he had retired and no-one with equivalent expertise could be recruited, despite repeated attempts to obtain this expertise.

"This position is not apparently unusual in smaller general hospitals, and there is a recognised shortage of paediatric radiologists nationally.

"There was a missed opportunity during this admission to identify non-accidental injury."

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Instead of being concerned for the baby's welfare, staff overheard the pair talking of going to Nando's for dinner (Image: SWNS.com)

Isabelle was later admitted to hospital on March 20 where her condition deteriorated so much it was thought she wouldn't survive.

On March 21 specialist imaging was carried out which revealed she had an inter-cranial bleed, potentially as a result of abuse.

The injuries, which also included a broken leg and fractured wrist, left her unlikely to ever walk or talk and with severe disabilities.

The report also revealed that despite six hospital admissions in five weeks, none of the incidents were linked - leading to each being treated as a "new" issue.

The review said: "At each admission, the medical team were in effect 'starting again'.

"On each occasion the search began anew to seek medical or congenital reasons for Child N's condition."

Hospital staff were also criticised for their readiness to accept the parents' explanation for the injuries.

Prigmore said Isabelle's leg pain may have been down to hip dysplasia, which she had suffered from as a child.

When Isabelle was admitted after she stopped breathing, the parents were shown how to give life support if it re-occurred.

They said they already knew how and this was not questioned.

Uzzell and Prigmore left their baby with life changing injuries (Image: SWNS.com)

Information on the parents' mental health was not highlighted, which could have referred Isabelle to social care at birth.

Uzzell had a history of neglect, was sectioned, heard voices and fathered a child with a girl aged 15 but had no contact with her.

Prigmore had ADHD and a history of depression, a fact which she had shared with the midwife.

But neither parent shared their childhoold difficulties or the fact that Uzzell already had a child.

The midwife saw them as vulnerable and likely to need additional support, but no health professionals contacted mental health services to find out their history.

The review said: "There was significant and relevant history in relation to the likely parenting capacity of both parents and possible vulnerabilities.

"Unfortunately, the level of safeguarding concern was not reached which might have led to referral to children's social care.

"The fact that mother and father themselves withheld some relevant information and seemed to be coping and committed to the baby also is likely to have led professionals to take an optimistic and less inquiring approach."

Kettering General Hospital's director of nursing and quality, Leanne Hackshall, said: "The Trust has been fully involved in the very detailed investigation into the health care and support that Child N received during the early weeks of her life and we profoundly regret the missed opportunities to escalate safeguarding concerns that have been identified by the investigation into this case.

"We have examined all of the interactions we had with her, and her parents; looking closely at all of the points in time where we could have acted differently and have put in place further improvements to our safeguarding procedures and training to further support staff in recognising the 'at risk' infant.

"We now have access to some specialist services that assist in the diagnosis of injuries in babies and children - namely the specialist reporting of paediatric radiology images with University Hospitals Leicester.

"We have an even stronger emphasis on sharing safeguarding concerns with our partners, ensuring these are on permanent record at an early stage.

"We have sought to learn every possible lesson raised by this case.

"Our aim has been to ensure our safeguarding systems are as robust as they can reasonably be in order to enable us to identify abuse at an early stage and protect vulnerable infants."